Our communities in brief

An East Contra Costa County gang member was sentenced Friday to 60 years to life in prison for the murder of a junior gang member.

Isaac McCuan, 33, was convicted by jury in July of first-degree murder with use of a gun and for the benefit of a criminal street gang for fatally shooting 25-year-old Giovanni Bey, of Pittsburg, in that city on Aug. 1, 2010.

Prosecutors say McCuan killed Bey because he refused an order to attack another inmate when he was incarcerated at the County Jail.

-- Malaika Fraley, Staff

LAFAYETTE

City set to adopt stronger smoking laws

Officials have agreed to adopt new rules aimed at curbing secondhand smoke in the city.

The City Council will meet Nov. 12 to approve the new guidelines to expand the city's existing smoking laws. Officials decided to go ahead with the proposed changes Monday after an update from city staff and feedback from residents.

Once adopted, the new rules will ban smoking at outdoor public areas and events and outdoor dining areas. They will also prohibit it in all units in new multifamily developments and all units in existing multifamily dwellings leased or rented 90 days after the guidelines are approved.

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On Monday, planning director Niroop Srivatsa said smoking will be allowed in designated areas within multifamily dwellings, but not balconies, patios, porches or outdoor fenced areas. She said the new rules won't apply to electronic cigarettes.

Council members also addressed residents' concerns that the new multifamily rules would not apply to longtime tenants.

"For those of us who have said 'let's just ban it immediately,' I think you do wind up essentially forcing some people from their homes, and that's not a step I'm prepared to take," said Vice Mayor Don Tatzin.

-- Jennifer Modenessi, Staff

Bay Area

High winds, but no rain this weekend

Bay Area residents can brace for some gusty conditions this weekend as winds pick up in the North Bay and East Bay as well as the Santa Cruz Mountains.

According to the National Weather Service, wind speeds will grow as the dry weather continues through the weekend. Gusts are expected to reach up to 45 mph Saturday night and will gradually decrease during the day Sunday before ramping up again that night.

Temperatures will hover around 70 degrees Saturday in Concord before dropping to the mid- to upper-60s on Sunday and Monday. In Livermore, temperatures will be in the low 70s before also dipping into the mid- to high-60s starting Sunday.

However, a dip in temperatures does not mean rain in the forecast, the National Weather Service said. No wet weather is expected in the coming days.

-- Katie Nelson, Staff

CASTRO VALLEY

Teachers reach pact with district

Teachers will receive a 3 percent wage boost and increased health benefits under a tentative agreement reached with the school district.

"Overall, we feel positive about the settlement and relieved that we were able to reach an agreement after six months of negotiations," said John Green, president of the Castro Valley Teachers Association.

The pact does not include supplemental Medicare payments for retired teachers who were working before 1986.

Earlier contracts had included the supplement, which was designed so that those teachers would receive the same benefits as those working after educators began paying into Medicare in 1986.

District officials discovered earlier this year that the benefit was deleted from the contract in 1997. The union had sought to reinstate the supplement, but the district would not agree, Green said.

The tentative agreement covers the current school year. Negotiations will begin in February on a new three-year contract.

-- Rebecca Parr, Staff

OAKLAND

11-year-old robbed on his way to school

An 11-year-old boy walking to school Friday morning in East Oakland was robbed at gunpoint of $5, police said.

The robbery happened about 7:20 a.m. in the 2500 block of 19th Avenue. Police said the boy was confronted by a teenager armed with a gun who demanded his phone but took $5 instead, before a resident in the area intervened.

The victim was not hurt, police said.

-- Harry Harris, Staff

LIVERMORE

La Russa to speak at Bankhead next week

Former Oakland A's manager Tony La Russa will bring his legendarily meticulous mind to the Bankhead Theater for a talk on leadership at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday.

In addition to his five decades as a player and manager, including leading the Oakland A's and St. Louis Cardinals to World Series titles, La Russa is co-founder of the Animal Rescue Foundation in Walnut Creek with his wife, Elaine. He is currently on special assignment for Major League Baseball.

Tickets are $15 for those 21 and younger and $30 for those over 21. The talk, entitled "Winning: Creating a Culture of Shared Leadership and Teamwork," precedes a question-and-answer session and reception.

La Russa is the second speaker in the Bankhead's 2013-14 Rae Dorough Speakers Series.

The Bankhead Theater is at 2400 First St. For more information, call 925-363-6800.

-- Jeremy Thomas, Staff

Hayward

Woman critically injured in shooting

A 28-year-old Hayward woman was critically injured in a shooting outside an apartment building Thursday night.

Officers responded about 11 p.m. to the Lord Tennyson Apartments in the 27000 block of Sleepy Hollow Avenue after callers reported hearing a woman yelling "Don't shoot me, don't shoot me!" followed by four to five gunshots, Sgt. Eric Melendez said. The woman was found lying in the parking lot with gunshot wounds to her upper torso, and she was taken to the hospital with life-threatening injuries.

The woman underwent surgery Friday morning, Sgt. Mark Ormsby said, and was considered "critical but stable" after being placed in a medically induced coma.

Police had yet to identify the woman Friday and did not say whether she lived at the apartment complex, Ormsby said. Authorities have not released a motive or suspect information.

The shooting is the fourth for the apartment complex in a 10-month span, the last being a fatal incident that involved Hayward police officers.

-- Erin Ivie, Staff

Richmond

Ship to host Veterans Day observance

The historic World War II cargo ship SS Red Oak Victory will again host Richmond's observance of Veterans Day at 11 a.m. Nov. 11 at 1337 Canal Blvd. in the Port of Richmond.

The ceremony will include music, remarks and a laying of flowers in memory of those who served.

Preceding the ceremony will be coffee at 10 a.m., followed by a 10:30 a.m. ribbon-cutting at the newly rehabilitated Rigger's Loft, one of the historic buildings of the Kaiser shipyards in World War II.

Lunch will be available at a barbecue fundraiser, and acrylic paintings by award-winning artist Tom Bottomley, a longtime volunteer on the restoration of the Red Oak Victory, will be offered in exchange for donations of $25 to $150 to the Ship's operating fund.